With a brutal 4-0 victory against Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday, Manchester City intensified their pursuit of a fourth Premier League title in a row thanks to two goals from Phil Foden.

One day after Liverpool’s hopes of winning the title were severely damaged by a 2-0 loss at Everton, City continued to put pressure on leaders Arsenal with a strong performance that left them one point behind the London team with one game remaining.

In the seventeenth minute, Kevin De Bruyne’s incredible diving header gave City—who was without top scorer Erling Haaland due to injury—the lead.

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Before halftime, Bernardo Silva’s defensive blunders allowed Brighton to reclaim the ball and provide an opportunity for Foden, the England midfielder, to sweep a shot into the bottom corner.

Foden scored his first goal with a deflected free kick. Foden became just the third player, after Lionel Messi and Haaland, to score 50 goals in the top division under manager Pep Guardiola while still just 23 years old.

Foden’s hat-trick helped City defeat Aston Villa 4-1 three weeks prior.

Midway through the second half, Julian Alvarez finished off the rout, and Brighton, who stayed in 11th place in the standings, never appeared to be able to rally.

After Nottingham Forest (40 in 1978) and Manchester United (34 in 1993–94 and 33 in 1998–99), Manchester City is the third English top flight team to reach that milestone.

They are unbeaten in 30 games across all competitions with 24 victories and 6 draws.

Their most recent defeat, excluding overtime, came in an early December matchup with Aston Villa.

The finest opportunity for Brighton came when Ederson, the City keeper, sprinted out of his area and fired the ball directly at Odeluga Offiah, who was unable to capitalise.

On Sunday, City travels to Nottingham Forest, who are in danger of relegation.

They play West Ham United, Fulham, Tottenham Hotspur, and Wolverhampton Wanderers to finish the season.